ed
upon him. Then as she concluded, she dropped her voice and eyes
together. "And I am now engaged to him as his wife."

"Oh, indeed!" said Mr Maguire.

"That statement must be taken for what it is worth," said Lady Ball,
rising from her seat. "Of what Miss Mackenzie says now, I know
nothing. I sincerely hope that she may find that she is mistaken."

"And now, Margaret," said Mr Maguire, "may I ask to see you for one
minute alone?"

"Certainly not," said she. "If you have anything more to say I will
hear it in my aunt's presence." She waited a few moments, but as he
did not speak, she took herself back to the door and made her escape
to her own room.

How Mr Maguire took himself out of the house we need not stop to
inquire. There must, I should think, have been some difficulty in the
manoeuvre. It was considerably past three when Sir John was taken
out for his drive, and while he was in the carriage his wife told him
what had occurred.

CHAPTER XXII

Still at the Cedars

Margaret, when she had reached her own room, and seated herself
so that she could consider all that had occurred in quietness,
immediately knew her own difficulty. Of course Lady Ball would give
her account of what had occurred to her son, and of course John would
be angry when he learned that there had been any purpose of marriage
between her and Mr Maguire. She herself took a different view of the
matter now than that which had hitherto presented itself. She had not
thought much of Mr Maguire or his proposal. It had been made under a
state of things differing much from that now existing, and the change
that had come upon her affairs had seemed to her to annul the offer.
She had learned to regard it almost as though it had never been.
There had been no engagement; there had hardly been a purpose in
her own mind; and the moment had never come in which she could have
spoken of it to her cousin with propriety.

That last, in truth, was her valid excuse for not having told him the
whole story. She had hardly been with him long enough to do more than
accept the offer he had himself made. Of course she would have told
him of Mr Maguire,--of Mr Maguire and of Mr Rubb also, when first an
opportunity might come for her to do so. She had no desire to keep
from his knowledge any tittle of what had occurred. There had been
nothing of which she was ashamed. But not the less did she feel that
it would have been well for her that she should have